About this tour
North of Houston, Lake Conroe stretches over 20,000 acres of open water, its lower reaches lined with marinas and lake houses and its upper end fading into the pines of the Sam Houston National Forest. This tour works both faces of the lake. It starts at the busy, developed south end for boat ramps and lake parks, then heads up FM 1375 into the national forest for the quieter, non-motorized paddling that the upper lake is known for — Cagle Recreation Area and the almost pond-like calm of Stubblefield Lake, with a stretch of the long-distance Lone Star Hiking Trail passing nearby. Bring a kayak or canoe for the forest end, pack food and water, and note that national-forest sites charge a small per-vehicle fee.